Common Resume Mistakes
There are a number of common mistakes that people make when writing their resumes. Each of these mistakes can really undermine you, no matter how much good work you have put into writing and formatting.
Here are the most common mistakes and how to fix them:
1. Using Tiny Fonts: People tend to change jobs much more frequently nowadays than they did in the past. Consequently it can be a struggle to squeeze in all your previous work experience in one or two pages, and as a result, many people are tempted to use a tiny font. This is not a good idea, you should never use a font size smaller than 10 points. Instead, you should aim to edit your resume to make it more concise. Additionally, it’s okay to omit information which is not relevant to your potential employer - for example, if you’re aged 50 and applying for a senior management position, it isn’t necessary to include the part-time Summer job you had in high school in your previous employment!
2. Too Much Text: When writing your resume, especially the previous experience section, you want to avoid use long wordy paragraphs. You want to be concise and focus on conveying the key points. Use action words like “managed”, “developed”, “created”, write simply, and even consider using bullet points instead of paragraphs of text.
3. Inaccurate Proper Names: Double check that all proper names (especially school and company names) are correct, and spelled correctly. Do not use variations or abbreviations of the names, no matter how widely understood that you think that they are - use the actual name.
4. Typos, etc.: They look careless and they are careless. Typos, spelling and grammar mistakes will simply convince potential employers that you are poor at paying attention to detail. Use the spell checker in your wordprocessor software, but be aware this will not catch everything, so ask friends and family to double and triple check your resume too.
5. Personal Web Sites: Many people include a link to a personal web site in their resume. This is mistake unless your web site is entirely focused on material related to your career. Non-work related information on your web site may come across as frivilous, time-wasting, irrelevant or inappropriate. If your web site includes jokes, photographs, stories, blogs, information about friends or social events, do not include a link to it in your resume. If you really want to include a link to a web site in your resume, then set up a web site just about your professional career, and link to that.
By S. Tanna. First published at http://www.jobpixie.com/resume_tips_mistakes.php
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